Nick Tavares: Tim Thomas made many memories — on the ice

On Thursday, a paper transaction benefiting both the salary cap of the Boston Bruins and the salary floor of the New York Islanders was finalized, sending an inactive goaltender to Long Island in exchange for a conditional draft pick that likely won't come to be.

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By NICK TAVARES

southcoasttoday.com

By NICK TAVARES

Posted Feb. 10, 2013 at 12:01 AM

By NICK TAVARES

Posted Feb. 10, 2013 at 12:01 AM

» Social News

On Thursday, a paper transaction benefiting both the salary cap of the Boston Bruins and the salary floor of the New York Islanders was finalized, sending an inactive goaltender to Long Island in exchange for a conditional draft pick that likely won't come to be.

That, likely, is the quiet ending to the Tim Thomas era in Boston, one that had all-but-officially ended with the goalie's decision to spend this season at home, one last weird memory in a career that has been like few others.

Thomas had made a name for himself beyond hockey circles recently, most notably in his refusal to attend a White House ceremony honoring him and his championship teammates after the Bruins won the Stanley Cup in 2011, and later through an occasional series of Facebook posts that proclaimed his many opinions on America, politics and God.

Those all proved controversial, mainly in not aligning with the majority shared by his fans, and it threatened to overshadow all he had accomplished on the ice, first toiling outside of the spotlight and then in black and gold, winning a cult of fans in Providence and, ultimately, Boston.

Beyond the Stanley Cup and the All-Star games and the politics, the lasting memory of Tim Thomas in New England for me comes from 2005-06, a lost season that saw the team gutted and, mercifully, led to the hiring of the current regime that has brought so much success to the Bruins.

Thomas had been called up from the AHL mid-season, and, after clearing wavers, he backstopped a team that had been left with players mostly old and broken or young and over their heads. His first start was a 2-1 loss to the Dallas Stars. Then the were two more wins, another loss, three more wins, a loss, and two more wins after that. A hapless team suddenly had a spark.

That 7-3 start gave the a team that was dead in the water a little life, and Thomas wound up starting 16 games in a row before finally getting a break in early March. There was too much damage done to save that year, but the Bruins were fun to watch again, thanks primarily to this acrobat who was stopping pucks and defying physics in the process.

All the while, after every game, even losses, the indelible image was of Thomas seated in his locker, beaming ear-to-ear, so obviously thankful to have reached the NHL after so many years of working in the minor leagues and in Europe.

Since then, he's rattled down the hockey dream checklist, setting records, winning trophies and etching his name into the Stanley Cup. And, after last season, he followed his own path again, heading home to enjoy life a bit.

As it was this year in Boston, he won't be playing on Long Island, likely ever. He's a free agent after this season, and whether or not he resumes his career is a mystery only he can answer. The Bruins have moved on, with Tuukka Rask more than ably filling his spot in net.

But his legacy here is safe. Short of some horrific act that goes beyond a Facebook update, he will be remembered as a core element to a generation-defining team, the Bruins squad who finally broke through and brought the Cup back to Boston. Every night was a highlight reel in the making, and every night, hockey fans watched him with the possibility that they might see something they'd never seen before.

For those who cared, those memories will last longer than any off-ice controversy.

Nick Tavares' column appears Sunday in The Standard-Times and at SouthCoastToday.com. He can be reached at nick@nicktavares.com